1

Sustainable Travel Transition Year Revenue Competition 16/17 - Application Form

Applicant Information Local transport authority name(s): Darlington Borough Council (DBC) Hartlepool Borough Council (HBC) Middlesbrough Council (MC) Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council (R&CBC) Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council (SBC) – lead authority Submitted by Tees Valley Unlimited (TVU)

Bid Manager Name and position: Fran Manancourt, Strategic Transport Planning Officer – Tees Valley Unlimited Contact telephone number: 01642 524462 Email address: fran.manancourt@teesvalleyunlimited.gov.uk Postal address: Infrastructure and Transport Tees Valley Unlimited Cavendish House Teesdale Business Park Stockton-on-Tees TS17 6QY Website address for published bid: www.teesvalleyunlimited.gov.uk

SECTION A - Project description and funding profile

A1. Project name: Connect Tees Valley 2016/17 Transition

A2. Headline description: The aim of the project is to:-

Ensure that local people can travel sustainably to the existing jobs and the 25,000 jobs being created in the Tees Valley and to training provision, utilising quality inter-urban rail, bus and car share networks, capitalising on investment by the 2 main bus operators and working with the new rail franchise operators at key rail stations;

Improve accessibility, increase walking and cycling levels and reduce carbon emissions for short local trips, in particular for those without access to a car,

2

those seeking employment and training and those who wish to become more active.

Support people with their travel options through a travel behaviour programme, providing information and motivation.

A3. Total package cost (£m): 1.52

A4. Total DfT revenue funding contribution sought (£m): 0.99

A5. Local contribution (£m): 0.53

A6. Equality Analysis Has any Equality Analysis been undertaken in line with the Equality Duty?

Yes No

A7. Partnership bodies: There are a number of partnership bodies either involved with the delivery of the package, support the package financially or whose objectives match those of the package. This is summarised below with further detail held within the Stakeholder Management Plan in Appendix G. Middlesbrough College – contributing £50k toward the provision of the Town Rider bus service. The college has a roll of 15,000 students and 1,000 employees, and is the major trip generator within the North of the Town. Croft Coaches – contract awarded to this local bus company to deliver the Town Rider Service. Urban and Civic development (retail developer in Middlehaven area) – Section 106 developer contributions (accessible post 2016/17) to continue and extend the bus service. Virgin Trains East Coast – support for community rail at Darlington Station - £10k and support with Bike Stop Hub at Darlington station and implementation of their station travel plan. First TransPennine Express – new ticket initiative. Northern/Arriva Trains North – support for station adoption. Match funding of £15k.

3

Bishop Line Community Rail Partnership – further implementation of station adoption and support for station travel plan development. Match funding of £25k. Sustrans – Responsible for managing the Stockton Hub and providing support for the other Tees Valley Hubs. Also providing the cycling propensity modelling element of the Rail Station Access work. Match funding of £77.5k. First Stop –A Darlington based homeless charity responsible for managing the Darlington Bike Stop Hub and developing a Rail-Cycle hub at Darlington Station. Match funding of £12.6k. Groundwork – Supporting Darlington’s walking programme. Match funding of £12.7k. Middlesbrough Environment City – Sustainable living charity operating Middlesbrough Cycle Centre and the Redcar Active Travel Hub. Contributing £42.5k toward the provision of Middlesbrough Cycle Centre. The Cycle Centre will also contribute to the Safer and Fuel Efficient Driver training package, assisting with addressing issues of cyclist vulnerability in relation to large and heavy vehicular traffic. The Redcar and Eston Schools Sports Partnership – Providing support for cycle training and signposting for the Redcar Travel hub. Match funding of £4.8k. Job Centre Plus – Contribution of space for delivery of the PTP programme, access to jobseekers and centre advisors. Hospitals - Offer of space for the delivery of the PTP programme and access to staff, visitors and patients. SME’s and organisations throughout the Tees Valley – Access to space, staff and communication streams for PTP delivery. In kind support will also be required for the Safer and Fuel Efficient Driving Programme participants, by asking all participants to enter into a simple agreement requiring them to monitor the effectiveness of the training 3 months and 6 months after the training course. Arriva – investing £18k in targeted marketing to support access to employment and training and providing incentives for the PTP programme. North East Smart Ticketing Initiative – providing funding to market a pilot smartcard product. Tees Valley Sport – integrating the Love to Ride Challenge with the Tees Valley Sports Workplace Challenge. Living Streets – It is proposed that a Project Officer from Living Streets will work in Hartlepool supporting the work of the Hartlepool Active Travel Hub and focusing on workplace and community walking initiatives.

4

SECTION B – The Business Case

B1. The Scheme – Summary This project has been developed on 4 principles:- 1. Supporting the capital investment in the Local Growth Fund; 2. Building on the investment already made by the public and private sector; 3. Continuing with what is proven to work; and 4. A clear focus on: a. access to employment and supporting the economy; b. walking and cycling; and c. end to end journeys linking walking and cycling to bus and rail journeys. Tees Valley Unlimited is a well-established Local Enterprise Partnership and has a clear economic ambition, articulated in the Strategic Economic Plan. The investment plan for transport includes £8.3m Local Growth Fund monies to support Sustainable Travel to Employment, a suite of measures to improve walking, cycling and public transport connectivity between housing and employment opportunities. Over recent years there has been significant investment in sustainable transport including branded inter-urban bus services with new low emission vehicles; active travel hubs across the Tees Valley and improvements to the quality of rail stations and to rail service frequency. There is a sound evidence base as to what has worked in LSTF 2015/16 and in previous projects and this has been used to inform the programme to ensure that it can deliver from day 1. Marketing, information and the PTP programme will focus on working with businesses and job seekers; delivering a strong cycling message including a Love to Ride challenge and working with bus and rail operators to encourage sustainable end to end journeys. Package 1 – Interurban Corridors There is a high degree of travel between the towns within the Tees Valley as well as to towns to the north in County Durham and to the south in North Yorkshire. Opportunities for employment and training need to be open to all, not just to those with access to a car. Both commercial bus operators have invested in high quality inter-urban bus services and the Easy Rider multi operator ticket has been extended across the whole area. These services are seeing passenger growth. Similarly the rail services across the Tees Valley are seeing good patronage growth, but there is more opportunity to increase sustainable travel to stations as well as grow patronage overall. The new rail franchises which come into operation in April 2016 provide a welcome opportunity to continue the good work on station adoption as well as promote new initiatives such as the introduction of a new discounted ticket for young people 16-18 and job seekers. A station travel plan under development by Virgin Trains East Coast at Darlington Station has identified that levels of cycling to the station is low – a new Bike Stop cycle hub at the station will help to address this. The projects are:

5

Delivery of the Town Rider Bus Service The Town Rider bus service connects Middlesbrough bus station with Riverside Park and Middlehaven via Middlesbrough Rail Station. The 2 areas are currently not served by un-subsidised public transport, but provide employment, training and education opportunities. Working with Middlesbrough College in Middlehaven, the provision of this service will allow a continued link in to a developing area of the town and remove transport as a barrier to accessing opportunities. The funding provided will allow the service to continue in the interim until Section 106 developer contributions are triggered, allowing support of a bus route servicing the wider Middlehaven and Riverside Park area. In support of this route, Local Growth Funding has been agreed to provide improved waiting facilities at key stops around Riverside Park. This will improve the attractiveness of using the service. Rail Station Access We will continue to champion station adoption at all TV stations following the successes in 2015/16, targeting stations with the greatest growth potential for cycling, walking and bus multi-modal journeys. We will work closely with the newly appointed franchise holders for both TransPennine and Northern franchises to implement actions identified by the adopters.

Sustrans will undertake audits at 5 rail stations to predict cycle use along routes within 5km of the stations using census and locally derived data. This will provide information on those routes that should in future be developed to improve cycle

6

access and outline proposals will be drawn up for these to feed in to the LGF process. In addition zone maps will be produced for 5 of the stations, as well as for 5 hospitals and some key employers to identify and promote walking and cycling routes to the sites. These will be used as part of the PTP programme. Ticket options will also be promoted including the multi operator Easy Rider bus ticket, rail cards and a new young person and jobseeker rail ticket. Virgin Trains are developing a station travel plan for Darlington Station on the East Coast Main Line and they will start to implement the action plan in 2016/17. It is recognised that there are low levels of cycling to the station. Bike Stop, a local charity that operates an active travel hub and bike recycling project in the town centre proposes to relocate to the station, providing cycle parking and maintenance to those travelling by train. This development will be supported over the next 2 years with 2 LGF funded projects to improve cycle access to the station including a bridge to connect the station to the adjacent Enterprise Zone. These inter-urban trips will be supported by new information on the Connect Tees Valley website, particularly site specific pages for employers, hospitals and rail stations and will include real time bus and rail information as well as cycling information. Marketing campaigns will include Catch the Bus Week and another commuter campaign. Package 2 – Local Trips Active Travel Hubs and Coordination Each main town has developed an active travel hub. The successful active travel hubs provide a range of initiatives designed to encourage and support people to walk, cycle and use public transport more often. These have been instrumental in supporting people into being more active, both walking and cycling. However they have also offered a variety of opportunities for volunteering, apprenticeships and employment. Recycling schemes have enabled people to purchase low cost bikes so they can cycle to work. Cycle parking and maintenance courses have enabled people to take up and keep cycling. Staff from the hubs are also able to work with local employers and communities to support cycling activity. STTY funding will allow ongoing continuation and expansion of the hubs, increasing their impact and providing valuable support to new and existing users. As the hubs are operated either in-house or in partnership with third sector organisations, the Active Travel Coordinator will work to share best practice, experience and resources from all partners in order to enhance effectiveness across the Tees Valley. This combined approach will assist in identifying ways to improve and make active travel journeys more attractive both locally and across the combined authorities. A Sustrans Project Support Officer will further develop the scope and efficacy of each hub by recruiting and training a cadre of local volunteers who will become facilitators for additional walking and cycling activities. As well as building capacity into projects, the local volunteers will also help promote and champion the activities throughout their communities, providing sustainability and legacy to the programme.

7

The PTP and marketing programmes support the active travel element of this proposal. A Love to Ride Challenge was implemented in 2015 across 80% of the Tees Valley. It engaged 58 organisations and 865 riders, of which 393 were new riders (and 52% of them were still riding 3 months later). It is proposed to roll out the challenge again across 100% of the Tees Valley, working with colleagues in Tees Valley Sport who run a workplace programme. The Big Summer campaign will run again rewarding people who travel sustainably to key tourism attractions as well as promoting free activities including bike rides and walks. Independent Travel Training Independent Travel Training provides residents with learning and physical disabilities the opportunity to undertake their own sustainable transport journeys. Before intervention, the trainees are provided personalised services to access education, training or employment opportunities, funded by the Local Authority. After successful training, the learners are provided with the skills to travel independently, improving their opportunities and self-esteem, and accessibility. Safer and Fuel Efficient Driver Training This Project will offer training to drivers in the nationally accredited ‘Safe and Fuel Efficient Driver’ (SaFED) training programme. These courses will target the key transport user group with the intention of reducing CO2 emissions, making the roads safer, improving journey times and helping businesses save money. Courses will offer a half or full day package directed to those employees in SME’s and Public Organisations throughout the Tees Valley who drive in their course of work. The training packages will be delivered to all types of drivers from car drivers to PCV and LGV drivers. The training will be supplemented by workplace seminars, newsletters and publicity events. Drivers involved in the project will be asked to provide a commitment to help with monitoring the effectiveness of the training delivered. This will involve submitting feedback information 3 and 6 months after the training course. The Project will also promote and develop alternative fuel options most notably electric vehicles. The Project will be managed by a part-time scheme manager with part-time admin support. The courses will be delivered by an existing team of accredited ‘SaFED’ trainers building upon a successful LSTF initiative ran in Durham, Newcastle and Northumberland. Package 3 – Information, Marketing and Communications Personalised Travel Planning The PTP programme has developed during 2015/16 from being primarily focussed on households to being a much more flexible programme that can use the same techniques to support travel behaviour change to multiple audiences. This has therefore been included in the proposal for 2016/17 which will include residential visits but also job centres, recruitment fairs, colleges, university, employers, hospital sites and community events. The programme includes monitoring to assess the impact of different approaches.

8

Sustainable Travel Marketing Programme The marketing team have developed a programme based on a small number of campaigns as well as some specific projects. The campaigns will include the Big Summer, Love to Ride and Happy Commuting. The projects will include Catch the Bus Week, as well as some specific rail station marketing using new zone maps, a FAXI pilot at a business park and moving house supported by PTP. There will be a focus on young people as they head to college and employment. This will build on the successful ‘Mr Journeyman’ animated social media campaign from 2015. Social media campaigns will also run for walking (May 2016), cycling (June 2016) and so on, linking to national campaigns including Bike to Work Week or Car Share Day. The pledge campaign by which people pledge to travel more sustainably will continue. Currently over 1100 people have signed up. Initial research shows that 62% of people had made a change in their travel behaviour. Development of the Connect Tees Valley Travel Information Portal Provision of an interactive online bus map showing realtime information at each stop on all routes where realtime capability exists. The mapping will be embedded within the www.connectteesvalley.com travel information site, supported by the five Tees Valley authorities. Whilst every effort has been made to maximise the benefits of the project at the same time as looking to keep costs as low as possible, there are certain elements of the bid which are scalable and could be reduced further, if funding constraints at a national level dictated. Although not ideal, there are elements of the bid that could be scaled back without dramatically reducing the benefits of the project.

B2. The Strategic Case

Context The Tees Valley’s vision is for a high value, low-carbon economy which thrives on diversity and inclusivity and where employment opportunities are open to all residents. The Tees Valley Strategic Economic Plan (SEP) has a priority to ‘Provide

Context

• Tees Valley Strategic Economic Plan

• Sustainable Community Strategies

• Emerging Combined Authority Strategic Transport Plan

Input

•Capital Investment - Private and Public Sector

• Partnerships

• Experience and expertise

Planned Outputs

• Enhanced public transport

•Active travel

• Safer and more fuel efficient driving

• Information and Marketing

Outcomes

•Access to jobs training and services

• Increased levels of physical activity

•Reduced congestion

•Reduced Emissions

Impact

•Greater levels of employment

• Improved Health

• Improved air quality and public space

•High quality transport provision

9

Infrastructure to Enable Growth’. The SEP recognises that effective transport connectivity is crucial to the future development of the Tees Valley as it will stimulate, support and be a driver for economic growth. Overcoming barriers to get businesses and people moving, trading, working, learning and exporting is therefore essential to achieving the economic aims of the Tees Valley. The sustainable transport network has been under continual development through local authority and private sector funding to develop comprehensive cycling networks, improve the quality, reliability and punctuality of public transport services, improve travel safety and reduce the perception of risk, provide low cost travel and provide access to opportunities for all. The next stage of capital investment will be funded with £8.3m Local Growth Fund monies in a Tees Valley Sustainable Access to Employment Programme which will: • Improve walking and cycling access between housing and employment and

training provision sites – through links to existing and new employment sites and a reduction in severance in key locations created by the strategic road network and rail lines;

• Improve actual and perceptions of safety on existing transport networks to encourage the use of more sustainable modes – through continuous, direct routes, better lighting, improvements at known dangerous crossings and junctions and improvements at public transport interchanges; and

• Improve access to/from the Tees Valley’s public transport network – through improved walking/cycling links and improved public transport interchanges.

If an investment is not made in providing an alternative to the private car, existing and future employment sites will find their recruitment limited to only the car owning section of the population. There will also be an overreliance on the use of cars to access employment resulting in poorer health and air quality, and congestion with its resulting costly mitigation measures. Over the last 4 years there has also been significant investment by the private sector in improving bus services, including investment in new low emission vehicles, rail services including an increase in service frequency across the Tees Valley and in rail freight through gauge enhancement from Tees Port to the East Coast Main Line. As the economy has started to grow there has been an increase in house construction, new companies have moved to the area and existing companies have created new training and employment opportunities. However, just 278,300 of the Tees Valley’s 417,000 working age population are in employment, with the Tees Valley providing just 292,500 jobs. The region is working to continue to narrow this gap in order to build the conditions for long-term investment and create a dynamic economy. The programme will look to target improving accessibility for non-car modes for key strategic movements across the Tees Valley. It has been designed to contribute to the SEPs target to overcome barriers to get businesses and people moving, trading, working, learning and exporting. Therefore rail services and inter-urban bus services will provide the longer distance links across the Tees Valley. Improving local access

10

to key strategic employment and development sites such as Enterprise Zones, town centres and new housing sites will provide sustainable travel options for the door to door journey. The individual projects within the programme will support the local economy and remove barriers to growth, for instance providing a bus service to link the bus station, rail station and Middlehaven Enterprise Zone to enable people to access education, training and employment opportunities. PTP Travel Advisors will work in Job Centres and with employers to provide travel information and support, including advice on multi operator bus tickets and a new jobseeker rail ticket. The Tees Valley Youth Employment Initiative will provide flexible support to young people (NEETS) to take up training and employment opportunities including journey planning and assistance with travel. Accessibility The development of high quality sustainable transport access is vital in connecting the residents of Tees Valley to their employment, skills and training requirements. With only 281,000 jobs for a working age population of 421,000, unemployment is a persistent issue with youth unemployment, deprivation and barriers to work particular problems. To reduce worklessness it is vital to enable social mobility by creating local opportunities for training and employment that are cheap and easy to access. It cannot be assumed that residents will be able to access opportunities by car (30.5% of people in Tees Valley do not have a car, compared to 25.6% nationally), or live near to opportunities or existing sustainable transport networks. Congestion High levels of congestion have a negative impact on the economy – the costs to the economy of congestion, specifically vehicle delay and increased journey times are well documented. Unacceptable levels of congestion will stifle regeneration through the planning process as well as by investors being deterred from investing in problem sites. In comparison to costly highway schemes sustainable transport provision can provide a more cost effective, deliverable solution for reducing congestion on the highway network. A particular issue is low occupancy vehicles which contribute to a disproportionate amount of congestion to the number of people on the road. Through a combination of improved awareness, marketing and infrastructure from other funding sources (including LGF and LTP), the programme will look to encourage people to shift to sustainable modes where appropriate. Public transport, walking and cycling require significantly less road space and can help contribute to retaining the economic competitiveness that a free flowing well connected transport network can offer the Tees Valley. Safety The programme, through measures such as the SaFED project, will look to improve the safety for active travel users from journeys where cars are the only option by providing drivers with the skills to change their driving habits and increase their awareness of other road users.

11

Environment Motorised vehicles continue to be a major contributor to carbon emissions, poor local air quality (NOx, particulates, etc.) and noise pollution. Whilst modern technology, such as more efficient engines and electric vehicles, is reducing emissions from motorised vehicles, sustainable transport still provides a solution which can make a much larger impact on a growing urban population. The SaFED project will also look to reduce CO2 emissions from journeys where cars are the only option by providing drivers with the skills to change their driving habits. Health Active travel modes, including accessing public transport networks, have the potential to improve the health of the Tees Valley population. The NHS guidelines of 150 minutes moderate activity per week for adults aged between 19 and 64 can easily be covered by commuting by bicycle or fast walk for 15 minutes each way 5 days a week, or a fast walk to/from a bus stop/railway station. Active travel can help tackle obesity and has been proven to reduce time off work due to sickness, which can help local employers to improve productivity and competitiveness. Inputs The Tees Valley is not starting from a stationary position, much is well underway, both in terms of economic recovery and growth and the required investment into transport connectivity and infrastructure. Examples include

The Tees Valley Bus Network Improvement project has seen the delivery of bus priority measures, new and improved passenger waiting facilities, enhanced information and marketing and as a result services are more reliable, punctual and customer satisfaction has increased;

Bus operators have invested in new low emission fleets and branded inter-urban corridors including the high spec MAX and Sapphire services, resulting in growing patronage;

Following an increase in rail service frequency, a programme of rail station improvements and a new station at James Cook University Hospital, rail patronage is growing across the Tees Valley; and

New cycle routes have provided continuous direct routes to places of education and employment.

Effective partnerships, where both partners contribute something for mutual benefit, are well established through the Transport and Infrastructure Group (part of the LEP), the Punctuality Improvement Board (bus operators) and through local project boards. In addition, new partnerships are developing in the rail sector:

The development of a masterplan for Darlington Bank Top Station involving Network Rail, TOCs and the LEP

New rail franchises for Northern and TransPennine rail operation provide opportunities for partnership and investment to promote sustainable travel to rail hubs and the further extension of community rail.

Virgin Trains now operate the East Coast rail franchise and are working in partnership on their station travel plan, for Darlington station

Experience

12

The Tees Valley has a great deal of experience on developing and implementing sustainable transport schemes, activities and initiatives through sharing best practice. For example during the 2015/16 LSTF project:

A Tees Valley Active Travel coordinator has ensured that best practice has been shared across active travel hubs as well as practical assistance to share resources, ideas and monitoring

The PTP programme which was delivered successfully by Darlington Council as part of its LSTF project 2011-2014, was extended to deliver across the Tees Valley using experienced staff and tried and tested training, app support and collateral.

The Tees Valley wide public transport marketing delivered as part of TVBNI which had worked alongside Darlington’s LSTF marketing programme was combined to deliver a Tees Valley wide sustainable travel marketing programme in 2015/16.

The successful Independent Travel Training programme in Middlesbrough has been extended to 2 neighbouring authorities

Planned Outputs The planned outputs are detailed in the 3 packages: Package 1 – inter-urban trips, accessing employment Package 2 – local sustainable trips, with a focus on active travel Package 3 – marketing and information - building on TVBNI/LSTF legacy They can be summarised as follows:

Operational bus services and bus service extension;

Station adoption and options to improve sustainable travel to 5 key stations;

A pilot Rail Cycle Hub;

Further development of the Active Travel Hubs including delivering cycle maintenance courses, cycle recycling, guided rides/walks, workplace events and facility development;

Safer and Fuel Efficient Driving;

Programme of work with new and existing employment sites and job centres to promote sustainable transport options to workers and residents;

Provision of an interactive bus map;

Connect Tees Valley marketing targeting commuters, job seekers, leisure trips and young people; and

Improved travel information from Door to Door, including ticketing. Outcomes The outcomes tend be short and medium term benefits to both the people and the place and should address the issues in the SEP and seek to achieve the objectives set out in the work packages. These include:

People without access to a car being able to take up training and employment opportunities;

Employers being able to recruit and retain staff at sites which are poorly served by public transport due to their location at a distance from commercially viable

13

routes (particularly associated with large scale freight and logistics centres and chemical industries which are based away from residential populations);

Inward investment by new private sector industries based on good regional, national and international transport links as well as good local sustainable transport;

High quality public transport and higher levels of customer satisfaction;

Increased Bus Patronage and user satisfaction;

Increased use of sustainable transport;

Development of a commercially attractive bus route;

Increased number of passengers arriving at stations by sustainable modes;

Increased driver road safety awareness of vulnerable road users, most notably cyclists;

Increased number of job seekers in employment or training after PTP conversation;

More people being more active more often;

Reduction in CO2 through the adoption of fuel efficient driving practices; and

Benefits to businesses through reducing transport and fuel costs as a result of the SaFED training.

These can all be monitored through existing data collection methods such as patronage data, traffic counters, Passenger Focus customer satisfaction, NHT surveys and Sport England surveys. Impacts The impacts are measured over the longer term. They may be associated directly with these proposals but more likely as a result of a combination of capital investment through LSTF, LGF, private sector and EU funding together with revenue funding from LSTF and other sources. They should not be the endgame, but act as a catalyst to further investment and development to create a high quality place for all in the Tees Valley. • Job creation – 25,000 jobs by 2025 • Reduced dependency on welfare • Improved health • Reductions in carbon and other emissions from transport • Construction of significant numbers of additional houses but with car traffic

growth minimised and high quality residential environments • A growing commercial bus network supporting the local economy • Investment in rail by the Train Operating Companies and Freight Operating

Companies as demand for freight and passenger rail services increases The success of this project and the complementary LGF Programme will be determined by the proportion of people travelling to work by sustainable modes of transport. The Tees Valley is targeting a 5% reduction in the number of people travelling by car for journeys to work of less than 3 miles by 2020. This will be achieved through: • an increase in the number of people travelling by foot; • an increase in the number of people travelling by bicycle; • an increase in the number of people travelling by rail;

14

• maintaining the number of people travelling by bus; A key outcome will be the number of the 25,000 jobs created and the number of houses completed that are accessible by bus and other sustainable transport modes. Of course there are numerous external factors which could affect the uptake of sustainable modes in the Tees Valley that are out of the control of the programme (e.g. a reduction in travel due to job losses such as SSI, a reduction in bus services, development in areas away from sustainable transport networks). However, with previous experience of similar levels of investment, such as Darlington’s Local Motion Programme, which saw a 9% reduction in cars being driven between 2004 and 2008, it is believed that this shift is achievable.

B3. The Economic Case – Value for Money The packages within the bid are intended to support the ambitions of the Strategic Economic Plan and to specifically support the Sustainable Transport elements and associated sustainable transport capital interventions in the Local Growth Fund and Local Transport Plans. The sustainable transport element of the Local Growth Fund proposes significant further investment in cycling, walking and public transport infrastructure in between 2016/17 and 2019/20. The combined capital cost of the various interventions is £8.3m and constitutes interventions that support sustainable inter-urban trips and local sustainable trips. Jointly, between the LGF sustainable access programme and revenue funds that the Tees Valley will continue to bid for, the area is targeting a reduction in the number of cars being driven for journeys of less than 3 miles by 5%, by 2020. Experience in delivering these types of improvements shows that value for money is best achieved when revenue funding is used to support significant capital investment. Tees Valley Authorities are well practised in this approach and it has latterly been used in supporting the implementation and marketing of services and facilities improved through the Connect Tees Valley LSTF Programme and the Tees Valley Bus Network Improvement project. Darlington’s Cycle Demonstration Town project included significant revenue support to publicise and market the cycling ”offer” in the town. Cycle usage increased as new infrastructure was implemented and subsequently “marketed” through the provision of area wide marketing and information and Individualised Travel Marketing. It is difficult to accurately and meaningfully derive Value of Time savings from these initiatives due to the dispersed nature of their locations and indeed the varied nature of the interventions proposed across a range of modes. We will not therefore be providing Value of Time calculations.

15

In addition, there is significant crossover between the work packages i.e. a bus service improved or provided in package 1 is likely to be marketed to businesses and residents as part of the Individualised Travel Marketing. Similarly, package 3, marketing and information, will provide benefits for packages 1 and 2 but are difficult to quantify. In the interests of simplicity and to avoid double counting or time consuming disaggregation of benefits, the benefits for package 1 will be expressed as additional bus trips and Package 2 will be expressed as vehicle kilometre reductions with associated carbon savings. An appraisal summary table, Scheme Impact pro-forma for individual elements of the project and an aggregated scheme impact table is attached at Appendix B. The benefits and outcomes of the packages are provided in the Appraisal Report in Appendix C. Some elements of the project do not have scheme impact tables as there impact cannot easily be measured, for instance it is difficult to accurately assess tangible benefits of the marketing and information activities. The aggregated table indicates that Package 1 will result in an additional 80,000 bus journeys than if funding was not made available. It also indicates that package 2 will result in a reduction of 5,624,652 vehicle kilometres and an associated saving of 1,157 tonnes of carbon.

B4. The Financial Case – Project Costs Table A: Funding profile (Nominal terms)

£000s 2016-17

DfT funding sought 994

Local Authority contribution

83

Third Party contribution including LGF

446

TOTAL 1,523

B5. Management Case - Delivery Members of TIG and officers at TPOG level were responsible for overseeing the delivery of the £60m programme of measures that made up the Tees Valley Bus Network Improvement (TVBNI) scheme. TVBNI was made up of a number of schemes largely designed, procured and delivered by individual local authorities to an agreed Tees Valley specification. The programme was managed through a TVBNI Project Board (including TIG representatives) and TVBNI Project Manager Group (including TPOG

16

representatives). This included setting project objectives, managing project identification, business case development, project sifting/prioritisation, project delivery, programme/project change management, partnership management, project evaluation and project monitoring. Members of TIG and officers at TPOG level are currently responsible for delivering the £1.27m Connect Tees Valley Local Sustainable Transport Fund 2015/16 Programme. This comprises of a number of individual schemes that are being delivered by individual local authorities. The programme is being managed by TVU and members of TPOG, with TIG signing off quarterly progress and change reports. The programme is being funded due to a successful application for funding to the DfT which required benefits to be estimated for the various elements of the programme and value for money to be calculated. Schemes within the programme are delivered by individual authorities e.g. the Riverside Bus Service in Middlesbrough, or in some cases, one authority delivers a scheme across the Tees Valley, e.g. the Personalised Travel Planning programme is delivered by Darlington across Tees Valley households, businesses and Job Centres. At a project level the local authorities are vastly experienced in the delivery of sustainable transport schemes through their Local Transport Plan Integrated Transport Block. All of the Tees Valley authorities have good track record of delivering their schemes, identified through the Department for Transport’s Annual Progress Report monitoring processes. Specific examples of the proven track record of delivery of sustainable transport schemes in the Tees Valley includes: - Improving bus punctuality; - Slowing/halting the decline in bus use; - Significant improvements with bus satisfaction – particularly amongst young

people; - Our marketing campaigns have cut through with the general public (evidenced

with growing visits to the Connectteesvalley.com website and the Institute of Marketing award for our campaigns); and

- National recognition of our excellence in delivery – LSTF/UK bus award wins (3 awards) and NTA nominations (3 nominations in 2 years).

a) A project plan (typically in Gantt chart form) with milestones should be included,

covering the period from submission of the bid to scheme completion. The definition of the key milestones should be clear and explained. The critical path should be identifiable and any key dependencies (internal or external) should also be explained. Resource requirements, task durations and contingency should be detailed and easily identifiable.

A copy of the Project Plan is available in Appendix F.

b) Where relevant, if delivery of the project is dependent on land acquisition,

please include a letter from the respective land owner(s) to demonstrate that arrangements are in place in order to secure the land to enable the authority to meet its construction milestones. Not relevant

17

c) Where relevant, please provide summary details of your construction milestones (at least one but no more than 5 or 6) between start and completion of works: Not relevant

B6. Management Case – Statutory Powers and Consents a) Please list separately each power / consents etc obtained, details of date

acquired, challenge period (if applicable) and date of expiry of powers and conditions attached to them. Any key dates should be referenced in your project plan.

N/A

b) Please list separately any outstanding statutory powers / consents etc, including

the timetable for obtaining them.

N/A

B7. Management Case – Governance TVU is a voluntary public/private partnership set up to develop and deliver strategic economic growth across the Tees Valley. It is the Local Enterprise Partnership for the Tees Valley and has a private sector-led Leadership Board, an Investment Panel and a range of thematic groups that support, advise and inform the Panel and Board on key strategic matters. TVU Investment Panel, Management Group and Transport and Infrastructure Group have been consulted during the development of this Bid and have approved it before submission. A Programme Management Framework which provides a robust, transparent and thorough approach to all aspects of programme management has been approved and will be used for all transport programmes/projects delivered by Tees Valley Unlimited. Programme management will be the responsibility of the following groups: Investment Panel (IP) The Investment Panel was set up to manage any funds under the direction of TVU and oversees project development, delivery and closure and performance management. The Panel is responsible for making recommendations to the Leadership Board for ‘selecting’ projects to put forward to government in a bid to receive funding. TVU Management Group (TVUMG) TVUMG is responsible for overseeing project development, delivery and closure and performance management as detailed in the approved Programme Management Framework. It is also responsible for overseeing and approving any project changes.

18

Transport and Infrastructure Group (TIG) TIG which is chaired by a private sector member of the Leadership Board is responsible for overseeing the Programme. TIG was set up to lead and set the direction of the Tees Valley’s key strategic priorities relating to Transport and Infrastructure provision in the Tees Valley in support of its economic growth ambitions. It has delegated authority to re-profile and re-allocate spend to other ‘selected’ projects when required. TIG is responsible for ensuring that all elements of the Programme are delivered in accordance with the funding conditions and the project is delivered to cost, time and quality requirements. It will receive regular highlight reports/exception reports and risk management updates from TPOG and the Programme Manager; oversee stakeholder management and will be responsible for making decisions on any significant risks that could affect the project in terms of cost or delivery. Linda Edworthy – Senior Responsible Officer is a member of TIG. Transport Planning Officers Group (TPOG) TPOG will manage the implementation of the projects and provide regular updates to the Programme Manager. It will be responsible for overseeing and approving any minor project changes; those that have a <10% variance spend/outputs/project delivery slippage. TPOG will meet on a monthly basis throughout the life cycle of the programme with the first meeting for this Programme taking place in May 2016. The group consists of representatives from the five Local Authority areas. Roles and Responsibilities Project Managers TPOG members are the Project Managers for the programme and are responsible for the day to day delivery of the various initiatives. Their responsibilities include: • Management of contracts with external organisations; • Management of performance of external organisation in terms of delivery and

quality; • Ensuring payment of invoices is carried out in a timely manner; • Provide regular updates on projects and attend monthly programme

meetings; • Support the Programme Manager in the collation of highlight and exception

reports; • Provide updated information relating to risk management; • Provide budget management information to the Programme Manager; • Interrogate and challenge expenditure to ensure procurement rules are

complied with; • Prepare grant claim forms and submit in a timely manner. Programme Manager – Strategic Transport Planning Officer, Tees Valley Unlimited The Programme Manager is responsible for the management, co-ordination and control of all aspects of the project from initiation to completion and is required at all

19

times to keep TPOG, TIG & the SRO informed on all matters in connection with the Programme. The Programme Manager’s roles and responsibilities include, but are not limited to the following: • Delivering the project, its objectives & products to the desired quality criteria; • Preparation of all high level documentation; • Maintaining project documentation e.g. project plan, risk log, stakeholder

map, highlight reports, change control etc; • Identifying and implementing a strategy for identifying and managing risks

which includes regular reviews, identification of appropriate mitigating actions and assigning appropriate risk owners;

• Providing regular highlight reports and updates to TPOG/TIG/SRO; • Providing appropriate exception reports where changes are made to the cost,

timeliness or quality of individual initiatives; • Ensuring that an accurate record is maintained of all key issues, actions and

changes affecting the project using the project Issues, Actions and Changes log; and

• Chair monthly TPOG meetings. Senior Responsible Officer (SRO) –Director of Strategy & Investment, Tees Valley Unlimited The SRO will own the Business Case for the Programme and is responsible for ensuring that the Programme is focused throughout its life cycle on achieving its objectives and delivering a product that will achieve the benefits. The SRO will be responsible for: • Challenging the Programme Manager on exceptions to plan; • Monitoring and controlling the progress of the project at a strategic level; • Ensuring that project risks are being tracked and effectively mitigated; • Provide a lead within TIG on any issues relating to the project; • Understanding which potential changes may impact upon the delivery of

other projects within the overall programme, and communicating these as appropriate;

• Informing the Programme Manager of any external changes that may affect the project (e.g. realisation of a risk in another project which may have an impact on the project);

• Owning and managing business level risks. TVU Project Team The TVU Project Support Officer will be responsible for: • Issuing quarterly claim forms; • Scrutinising claims for accuracy and checking supporting evidence for

eligibility; and • Processing claims for payment.. Accountable Body Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council will be the Accountable Body for the funding and Tees Valley Unlimited will coordinate all claims.

20

This approach has worked successfully for the implementation of a number of Tees Valley projects including TVBNI and Tees Valley Rail Improvements. Contract management and procurement will be undertaken by each local authority in accordance with their individual procurement procedures and in compliance with national legislation. Tees Valley Unlimited, in conjunction with the accountable body, will retain financial control and will submit all claims. Management of Project Changes TPOG will be responsible for overseeing and approving any minor project changes; those that have a <10% variance spend/outputs/project delivery slippage. The Programme Manager will ensure this is in accordance with the conditions of the grant and Accountable Body requirements. TIG will be responsible for re-profiling and re-allocating spend to other projects where there is a requirement to do so (for example if there is a project underspend or if a project is withdrawn from the scheme). Any financial changes to the delivery of the Programme would be referred to TVU Management Group with a recommendation for final sign off by the Investment Panel.

B8. Management Case - Risk Management The Risk Management Strategy has 4 phases: 1. Identification 2. Risk Quantification 3. Mitigation 4. Monitoring An initial risk identification exercise has already been completed at this stage utilising expertise and experience from across the Tees Valley and an initial Risk Register has been produced and is attached for reference. If the funding bid is successful the Risk Register will form part of the project management process. The main risks which need to be considered are: competitive; stakeholders; economic; environmental; financial; legislative; political; operational; social; strategic; and technological. An initial quantification of the identified risks has also taken place and some proposals to mitigate the risks. There are broadly 4 ways to mitigate risk: 1. Prevention – remove the risk completely by doing things in a different way 2. Reduction – reduce the likelihood of the risk occurring or the impact if the risk

does occur – i.e. contingency planning 3. Transference – insure against or transfer the risks to a third party 4. Acceptance – regularly review the risk but take no action – only apply to risks

below the risk appetite line.

21

The final phase of risk management is on-going monitoring of the risks. The Project Managers will ‘own’ the risks associated with their projects and the Programme Manager will monitor the Risk Register for the delivery of the programme. The Risk Log is attached in Appendix D.

B9. Management Case - Stakeholder Management The Transport & Infrastructure Group has strategic responsibility for managing stakeholders. A number of the key stakeholders such as PD Ports, Highways Agency and bus operators are members of existing stakeholder management groups such as TIG or the TVBNI Board. The Programme Manager will have responsibility for managing the stakeholders at an operational level and individual Project Managers will manage the relationship with key stakeholders as part of the delivery model for the different scheme elements. This will vary by scheme to scheme but will include regular monthly meetings and may include regular email updates. A Stakeholder Management Plan is attached at Appendix G. This is a ‘live’ document and will be used as a tool during the planning and implementation of the programme to highlight any risks and any action that needs to be taken. a) Can the scheme be considered as controversial in any way?

Yes No

b) Have there been any external campaigns either supporting or opposing the scheme?

Yes No

B10. The Commercial Case The majority of the initiatives involve an extension or improvement to existing services that have proved their viability. Where new services are proposed Local Authorities have had an early involvement with the service provider to resolve any viability issues. All initiatives are considered viable but this will be reviewed at the monthly Transport Planning Officers Group. Any issues that arise will be escalated to the Tees Valley Unlimited Transport and Infrastructure Group and presented by Linda Edworthy, in her role as Senior Responsible Officer in accordance with the governance arrangements set out in section B7. Procurement and recruitment are the main issues that need to be addressed early to ensure initiatives are ready to commence once the results of the funding are announced in April/May 2016. These processes have been incorporated into the Project Plan which is attached at Appendix F.

22

Recruitment by Local Authority can take up to 3 months. Procurement of the various services should take no longer than 4 months given that there are no OJEU or state aid issues. Draft tender documents will be prepared in readiness of the DfT announcement in April/May 2016. Table B10 below indicates the procurement path for the various initiatives. Services will be procured by individual local authorities in accordance with their procurement strategies and in compliance with the Public Contracts Regulations and European Union State Aid rules. Table B10 - Procurement Arrangements

Initiative Service Provider

Type of Procurement and

by who

Recruitment required

State Aid Compliant

<€200k (~£156k)

over three years

OJEU Compliant

Town Rider Croft Coaches with Middlesbrough College & Middlesbrough Council

Extension of existing Middlesbrough College contract

No Yes (De minimis)

n/a

Rail Station Access

Community Rail Officer / Volunteers

Continuation of contract with Community Rail Officer

No Yes n/a

Active Travel Hubs and Co-ordination

Stockton Cycle Hub delivered by Sustrans (registered charity)

Extension of existing contract between Stockton Borough Council and Sustrans to include Active Travel Project Officer

No Yes n/a

Redcar Travel Hub – Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council in partnership with an outside provider

Continuation of existing contract between Middlesbrough Environment City and Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council

No Yes n/a

Middlesbrough Travel Hub – delivered by Middlesbrough Environment City (registered Civil Society Organisation)

Continuation of existing Service Level Agreement between Middlesbrough Environment City and Middlesbrough Council

Yes – recruitment of an additional member of staff.

Yes n/a

23

Initiative Service Provider

Type of Procurement and

by who

Recruitment required

State Aid Compliant

<€200k (~£156k)

over three years

OJEU Compliant

Hartlepool Travel Hub – delivered by Hartlepool Borough Council Sustainable Transport & Road Safety team, Hartlepool Cycle Clinic @ Summerhill and Hartlepool Sport Development team.

Hartlepool Borough Council standard procurement rules for resources, etc.

No – using existing Hartlepool Borough Council employees

n/a n/a

Bike Stop Darlington / Bank Top Station and Darlington Walking Development Programme

Extension of contract between Bike Stop and Darlington Borough Council

Yes – Additional resources and staff for Bank Top, Bike Stop refurbishment.

Yes n/a

Extension of contract between Groundwork North East and Darlington Borough Council

No – use existing staff and partners

Yes n/a

Independent Travel Training

Middlesbrough Council

Council service provision

Yes – Replacement part-time trainer to add to existing Middlesbrough Council employees

n/a n/a

Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council

Council service provision

Yes – Additional part-time trainer to add to existing Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council employees

n/a n/a

24

Initiative Service Provider

Type of Procurement and

by who

Recruitment required

State Aid Compliant

<€200k (~£156k)

over three years

OJEU Compliant

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council

Council service provision

Yes – Additional part-time trainer to add to existing Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council employees

n/a n/a

Safer and Fuel Efficient Driver Training

Hartlepool Borough Council

Hartlepool Borough Council standard procurement rules for resources, etc.

Yes – scheme manager, admin support and SaFED trainers

Yes n/a

Personalised Travel Planning

Darlington Borough Council

Use existing Shared Services Agreement between Darlington Borough Council and other Tees Valley Local authorities

Yes –will need to add additional resource to the core team of Travel Advisors

n/a n/a

Marketing and Information

TVU/Darlington Borough Council

Service Level Agreement

No – use existing Darlington Borough Council employees

n/a n/a

Connect Tees Valley Interactive Bus Map

External supplier

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council to procure through the North East Procurement Organisation

Yes, external supplier

Yes Yes

SECTION C – Monitoring, Evaluation and Benefits Realisation C1. Monitoring and Evaluation The following monitoring will be undertaken across the Tees Valley. All this information is currently collected and no additional funding is required to monitor the outcomes. Short term outputs will be related to the implementation of each scheme element. - Numbers of workplaces/employees contacted through the PTP programme - Numbers of cycles recycled - Households/individuals contacted through Individualised Travel Marketing - Number of people trained to travel independently - Number of completed tasks carried out by the Active Travel Hubs. - Number of workplaces/employees engaged in the SaFED training programme

25

Short term outcomes - Rail patronage by station - Mode of transport used for accessing rail stations - Bus patronage – overall and route specific - Cycle count data - Longitudinal Travel behaviour research 2014 – reporting 2015 - Customer satisfaction – bus travel – Passenger Focus and GfK NOP - Customer satisfaction – all transport – NHT survey - Healthwatch surveys and feedback - Activity levels (walking & cycling) – Sport England Survey - Qualitative rail station audits - Sustainable travel to school – annual survey - Website traffic and access to information - Brand awareness - CO2 savings and cost savings to businesses as a result of the SaFED training - Take up of campaigns and events promoted by the Active Travel Hubs and

marketing team, for example the ‘Love to Ride’ campaign Longer term impacts - Health metrics including activity levels - Employment levels - GVA - Carbon impact of travel Evaluation of the outputs, outcomes and impacts will be on-going and will continuously inform the delivery of the schemes. In particular those initiatives that are new will be closely monitored and any adaptations required implemented immediately in order to achieve value for money. By submitting this bid, I agree to work with the Department to provide a reasonable level of monitoring to enable the measurement of outputs and evaluation of impacts.

Yes No